Burn Me Right

Chapter 78

April stared into the woods, "Rilley?" Autumn called, and April cleared her throat.

"I..........I don't remember much," that was a lie. April remembered every single bit of it. But telling her tale would mean putting Autumn through the same agony she went through.

"April, please," Autumn took April's hands into hers. "You refuse to speak in therapy. You don't talk to Mom or Dad or me. Who will you speak to?" Autumn noticed that April was avoiding her eyes.

"Please. April," Autumn's heart broke into pieces. Two years had gone by, and April was still not ready. When will she be ready? When will she open her heart?

Inhaling a deep breath, "Liam," she let out that breath. "He was my savior," which was true. Liam saved her from Ryle many times. She wouldn't have survived there if not for Liam. "He was my tormentor," the times he ruined her life were clear as a day. "He was a lover and an enemy," April didn't know why it had to come to this.

"He was an angel when he chose to be," she whispered, reminiscing about the nights he had cradled her to sleep, a guardian in the darkness. Those were the nights when he had cared for her when illness had held her captive.

"But he could transform into a malevolent demon with equal ease," she continued in a hushed tone, her memories turning darker. Those were the nights when her own sickness was a direct result of his hostility, and she had suffered in the shadows of his darkness.

"I.........." her throat closed. "He......" April held her tears.

"Take your time," Autumn rubbed her sister's back soothingly. "I will wait."

"I fell in love with him. At least to the human side of him," April scoffed, remembering how well he had fooled her. Autumn sat there listening to her sister's sad tale.

"Or maybe I wasn't. Perhaps it was Stockholm syndrome," she rubbed her teary eyes as they started to itch. "But you have to understand, Atty," she turned to her sister. She didn't want Autumn to judge her for falling in love with her kidnapper's son.

"He was the only human touch I had. Only human interaction I had all those years."

Autumn understood April's dilemma. "Rilley," she touched April's cheek. "I will never judge you for what you feel or say. Never, not even for once, think I will, okay? You did what you had to do to survive. Anyone would do the same, Rilley."

April nodded in understanding. "He changed when I discovered his true form. I saw him killing someone."

Autumn's heart stopped. Her sister was in the same situation as her. Cruelty of fate or these men?

"It was as though a switch had been flipped within him," April recounted with a haunted look. She recalled the moment when something inside him had shattered when the very essence of his being seemed to darken. "That was the path to my doon." She placed her trembling hand over her heart, willing it to slow its frantic pace, but the memories continued to race through her mind like relentless demons.

"He chased me, caged me, tormented me, but I wasn't willing to give away your names to him. I would've died but wouldn't have revealed it to him," April saw Autumn's guilty face. A tear dropped, and another, and a flood followed.

Sobs racked through her body. "Atty," April called, but Autumn wasn't stopping. "Atty, please," she pulled her sister into a hug. Autumn hugged April tight and wept until the wool shawl turned wet.

"This was all my fault. I shouldn't have left you there, I should've fought back" Autumn struggled to form words between the sobs. Guilt coursed through her veins.